Copper rose to its highest in a week on Wednesday after the US housing market showed more signs of revival, strong earnings boosted US equities and the dollar hit a 15-month low against the euro. Signs that demand may be picking up also boosted aluminium to 2-1/2-year highs. In New York, May copper futures rallied 2.60 percent to $4.3395 per lb, an 11-cent increase. Earlier, they hit a one-week high at $4.3480 a lb.
Aluminium closed at $2,730 a tonne, up from $2,714 at the close on Tuesday. It earlier hit its highest level in 2-1/2 years at $2,745 a tonne. Zinc closed at $2,360 a tonne from $2,329, despite a large 26,550-tonne shipment of the metal into New Orleans warehouses. Tin closed at $32,650 from $32,400 while stainless steel material nickel changed hands at $26,400 from $25,300.